


It's a Harsh World: End Game - Book 1

by Pheanix



Series: End Game Trilogy [1]
Category: End Game - Fandom
Genre: Eventual Relationships, F/M, Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2016-03-23
Packaged: 2018-05-28 15:50:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6334960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pheanix/pseuds/Pheanix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a girl moves to a new town she sees the chance for a new start. Taylor Haizer, a ninth grader, is having a rough time in school as well as life. She would find things easier if she was a different person. With things going down hill she's not sure what to do, until she meets Malach Kravec, a Russian exchange student. As nice as Malach is to Taylor, she isn't sure whether to trust him or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Moving In

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first of three books. I hope you enjoy!

When the car stopped my mom tapped my shoulder. I look over to her and take one of my ear phones out.

"We're finally here!" She says excitedly.

I give her a small smile and turn off my music. I hop out of the car and examine our new house. The navy blue siding was a little dirty and the windows needed washing as well. It was two stories and the black roof looked lifeless. I sigh as I turn to go get my bags. My little brother hops out of the car, almost hitting me with the door.

After dragging my stuff through the front door I look around. The stairs where right as you walked in. I look to my left to see the kitchen, then just down the hall was the dinning room and the living room. I drag my stuff up stairs and pick a bedroom. I pick the one to the right and drop my stuff off. I stretch, popping my back, then look back out the door. My younger half, Dillian, was looking around his room across the way.

"Guys, can you come back down here for a few?" Dad called. If I didn't then I'd be bitched at. Dillian follows me as we head to the living room.

"Yeah, what'd ya need?" I say scanning the room.

"The moving truck will be here soon so don't go too far, but go out and explore the neighborhood." My mom was looking through one of the windows out into the small back yard.

"Alright! Where to first?" Dillian yells as he drags me out the door, my hand in his.

"Um- Anywhere you'd like." I say with a fake smile. He's 8 now and you'd think children calm down around this age. Personally I think they skip calming down and transition into "I hate the world... Wait, what's that?!". They tend to pick what that thing is, but that's not really my problem. I too went through that.

He runs up a head of me. I end up jogging to keep up, then end up running as well. He was about a hundred yards ahead of me and I hear my phone start to buzz. I pull it out to see who it was. It was my old friend Blair Riez, I just let it ring. I'm getting a new number soon and I don't plan on keeping my old friends as contacts. I want a fresh start here and that's what I'm doing. I'm making myself a new identity. Probably not the best thing to do, but who cares.

Dillian gets distracted at some little girls house, she looked his age. I stop beside him to catch my breath. I look down at her chalk drawing of a unicorn. It was sloppy and the eyes were off center. I complement it anyway, you can only get better with practice. We start walking back after he got her name. I think it was Hailey Greil.

The truck was already there and we start pulling stuff through the door. Dad drags the mattresses to the bedrooms, mom helps some of the mover guys, while Dillian and I carried smaller boxes. At around 6 pm we finally get done and Dad orders pizza.

I head to my room to decorate a little. I set my bed up first, then started organizing my things around the room. The pizza was on the table at about 7, and after the smell had wafted to my room I couldn't wait anymore. I stumbled down the stairs and grabbed 3 slices then plopped down at the table. I didn't eat much lunch and was starving. When I see my mom staring at me I smile showing the food in my teeth.

"You're gross." She laughs with a shake of her head.

"I know right!" I exclaim.

"Alright you two. Lets not start a food fight or anything." Dad says looking between me and Mom. Mom giggles while I grin.

When we finish we pile the dishes into the dishwasher. I go back to decorating my room but this time with music. I put Pandora on and it was on shuffle mode. Hopefully no bad songs came on.

When I'm done I admire my work and see if there was anything I could fix. Nothing at the moment. I decide that it's still too early to go to bed and start putting my posters and drawings up on the walls. I start with my favorite Anime and TV shows. Then I start organizing my makeup, hair stuff, and art supplies. I set my laptop on the desk and sigh. Finally done...

I turn and flop onto my bed. At the end of the song "Gospel" by Panic! At the Disco I turn Pandora off and scroll through my Ifunny subscription feed. It mostly consisted of random vines and weird pictures. It was past midnight and I still wasn't that tired. I play two dots until I run out of lives, then I just lay in bed staring at the ceiling.

Why did it have to be New York of all places? My dads work just had to ship his position here. The neighbor hood we where in was just within the city and I hated it. I had to go to one of the major high schools now and I was just going to be the random new kid nobody likes. I wanted to go back to North Carolina and stay with my friends. But until I get old enough I'm stuck here. Somehow Dillian was okay with the idea.

I lay there and create some weird scenario in my head until I fall asleep.

~~~

When I wake up I'm startled when I'm not in my normal bed, then my memory comes back. I sigh and roll over to check the clock. 10:30 was too early... I roll over and try to sleep some more.

I open my eyes again when I hear knocking on my door. I turn my head toward the now opening door to see my mom.

"Breakfast is ready sweetie. I've got to go to work in a few hours so don't bug me too much. I'm going to take a little nap and shower, so please don't the waste hot water!" She leaves when I nod. The clock now read 11:37.

I drag my self out of bed and head to the bathroom. I wash my face and pat it dry with the nearest towel. I yawn and look in the mirror with my amber-green eyes. My long dark brown, almost black, hair was in a super messy state. I start brushing through it after I plug in the hair straightener. Once my hair is as straight as I can get it I spray some hair spray so it'd stay longer. Then I head back to my bedroom.

I put some make up on and decide to draw a little. I draw a character one of my friend made up, put the picture on tumblr and tagged her in the post. She liked it and thanked me. I check the date of when school started and sigh in disagreement. It was only a week away and the days pasted by as quick as a Sims day would.

I head down stairs to fix me some lunch, and I end up making some for Dillian as well. We decided grilled cheese was as good as it was going to get. After lunch we pass mom as she was on her way out the door.

"Have a good night my chidrens." She called as she rushed out the door. She had some odd names for us.

"You too mom!" I yell as I head up stairs. "Do you want me to help you unpack the rest of your things?" I ask Dillian.

"Uh, no I got it, but thanks for asking TayTay!" He said as he went to his room. I roll my eyes at the horrible nick name.

I prefer my regular name, Taylor, it suits me best.

~~~

School starts Monday and mom was taking me and my brother to get our hair cut. Thank god, mine was getting too long and needed cutting a few months ago. I asked how short my mom would let me cut it and she said she didn't care. Which is good because I'm cutting it quiet short. I showed the woman exactly how I wanted it and she got to work. When she turned me towards the mirror I was shocked. I looked great and was happy with how light weight my head felt now. Hair weighs a lot more than you'd think.

When my mom sees me she looked confused

"What'd you do with my child?" She asked turning me around to look at the back of my hair. I turn red in the face and hope she approves. "Well, whatever you did I like it!" I instantly felt better.

Dallian's hair was a bit shorter than usual, but not too short. Mine was a bit longer than his and I thought mine looked better too. We go and get lunch from McDonalds and head home. I hated this town already and I've only been here for a few days.

That night I lay in bed and wonder what high school was really like. Was it going to be more like heaven or hell? Who could I possibly meet while I'm here? What classes will they choose to put me in? Hopefully they switched my records over from my old school to this one. If not I'll have one fucked up schedule on my hands.


	2. Hell of a Place

I stumbled through the large glass doors wondering which way to go. Not a single person paid me any attention while I tried to find the front office. Once I finally found the run down room the lady running the whole show glared at me.

"Um- Hi, could you, or someone else, help me find my classes. I'm new here..." I was a little slow to find my words and my shy side was starting to show.

"Yeah, hold on a moment." She turns to face another hallway. "Jeffery! Come help one of the new comers, please!" I could hear someone jogging towards us and then almost fly around the corner.

This Jeffery guy wasn't too bad looking. He was about a foot taller than me, and had black mid-length hair. His dark brown eyes stared into mine.

"What's your name sweetie?" The shorter lady asked, her blondish-gray hair bobbed in it's bun.

"Taylor Haizer." I say looking around the room.

The walls where white with fake plants in the corners behind me. I hear the printer kick on and then the lady ripped a paper from the machine.

"This is your new schedule. Don't lose it until you memorize it. Jeffery, if you will, take her to get her chrome book before you show her to her classes." The lady said handing my schedule to Jeffery.

"Right this way." He said walking towards the door.

The first bell signaled, class had started while we walked down a long dim hall. Eventually we came to the library and walked to a geeky looking man at his desk. He wore glasses and a striped sweater.

"I'm here to pick up a chrome book for Taylor H." Jeffery said quietly at the man.

The librarian looked between me and the taller boy. He hesitated before he got up to get the laptop like thing. It was small and he gave me instructions on how to use it. Not that I need instructions. Once we head towards my first class Jeff starts talking.

"So, you like art?" He said not bothering to look back at me.

"Yeah, I love it actually."

"I'm a horrible artist. That's why I never took art. I'm in band though."

"I used to be in band, I played the flute. What do you play?" I mumbled quietly.

"Trumpet." He said as he turned left at the next corner.

"Cool..." I say quietly. He wasn't too talkative. I guess we have something in common. When we stopped at a closed door with the name Truman on it.

"Alright this is your new art class. I hope you're extra creative in the mornings and you don't mind the smell of cologne. He really likes his cologne..." His eyes rolled back as a memory of his resurfaced. "Anyway, you're in building D. Your next class is all the way across the football field. So try not to get lost or anything too crazy." He hand over my schedule and wishes me luck I smile and try the door knob

I frown. It was locked. I knock a few times, my heart raced as I waited. Then about 15 seconds later the door swung opened violently. The man that greeted me didn't look the happiest and was kind of scary looking. I understood what Jeffery meant by cologne now... Smells like he used half a bottle.

"You're late." He said glaring down at me. I rocked back on my heals and clutched my bag tight.

"I'm sorry, sir. I'm new and asked the office for help... I hope I didn't interrupt anything." I say looking past him at the rest of my class. They stared at me as if I was some freak. I shivered as I look back at him.

"It's not a problem, just go sit down somewhere." He says backing away from the door way.

I keep my eyes away from everyone else in hope that they wouldn't judge too much. Just because I'm a girl with short hair doesn't mean you can stare. I sit next to the window in the very back. No one was near me and it was slightly more peaceful here.

Basically nothing happened except we introduced ourselves and then we each got instructions to our next class. We still had ten minute of class left so I pull my schedule back out and examined it.

Art with Truman, JROTC with commander Kyles, social studies with Hodges, and science with Richards. I sigh and stuff all my things into my bag.

The next class was just plain shitty. Everyone there was assholes and I was one of 3 girls. The girls were the biggest pains I have ever dealt with and I wasn't sure if I was going to make it though the semester.

Social studies is as boring as it sounds. The only good thing about this class is that we go to lunch in it.

As I entered the huge room filled with students like me I panic. I don't preform well with a large amount of people. I step out and head towards the bathroom. I rush to lock myself inside one of the stalls. Pulling out my phone I turn it on with shaking fingers. I scroll through my contacts and stop on a old name. Jesse Cartman, he was my best friend and I was really missing him right now. He could have calmed me down. I was about to call him but I remembered a terrifying detail. He kept his phone off at school. Now who was going to calm me down? I take a few deep breaths then hold. Just like he taught me. I head out of the cramped stall only to run into a teacher. I start to worry again as she passed me. She ended up going into a stall and I sigh. I head to the sinks and stare uncomfortably into the mirror in front of me. I'm glad I didn't wear make up... I splash cold water on my face and grab some paper towels. I grip the sides of the sink tight.

I take a few deep breaths, once again, and walk back towards the lunch room. I get in the line for pizza and look around at the tables. There were maybe 3 seats left and it was at a group table filled with preps. It was obvious that they were preps because they wore the fanciest clothes. I sigh and look outside. The courtyard was filled with at least 100 plus students and I had spotted one of the perfect places. I rush out the doors and before I could get there a large group takes it. I huff and look around again. There was a spot in the C and B building corner. It was deserted and looked nice and quiet. I head there and hurried to eat. The alarm on my phone went off for me to get done. I had 5 minute to get to class. I stuff my apple in my bag and head towards the trash can. I keep my eyes far from everyone else's. Not that it helped.

"Hey! Miss lonely, may I accompany you to your next class?" An older boy called as he jogged over to me. I look his direction and stiffen. He looked a lot like my ex boyfriend...

"Do I know you?" I say when he got within earshot.

"Why no! I just thought you needed a friend." I look back to where his friends were and sigh.

"By the way your friends are laughing at you I'm guessing you were talked into it. So I'm going to have to say no, but thanks for the offer." I say turning to leave.

"Wait," He said grabbing my arm. "I was just trying to be friendly! Give me a chance." I pull away from his grip and shake my head.

"I'd rather be alone..." I say rushing to the stair way.

I sigh and jog up the steps. I turn right, then left and come to the classroom. I was the 2 person in the room besides the teacher. The guy who was first was already copying the notes on the board. This class was going to be nothing but notes. When I got to science it was just talking to everyone. I stayed quiet most of the time unless someone asked for my name.

"Alright class! Your worst day of school is almost over and guess what! You've got home work! Don't worry, it's not hard at all. All you have to do is pick a club. If you don't want to get involved that's alright, but you'll still have to do something in the end of year play. For example, dance... If you're not a dancer then you might want to pick one of these." Mrs. Richards says as she starts handing out bright pink papers.

I skim the paper and find a few I would like. I love acting, so Drama club would be nice. Spanish sounds okay... Physical Training? Eh... Yeah, sounds pretty shitty. The rest were a waste of time. The bell rings and everyone jumps up and rushes from the room. I sigh and shove my stuff in my bag.

"How was your first day here Miss Haizer?" I hear Mrs. Richards call as I swing my bag onto my back. I spin around with wide eyes.

"Um... A little scary." I say pressing my lips into a thin line. I recall my little panic attack earlier and try not to cringe.

"Oh, you'll like it here after a while. It's really not that bad once you make some friends." She says as she grabs her things.

I nod and hurry out the door. I walk slower to the car ramp and wait for my moms car. It was much later when I look up from my phone and see my mom still hadn't arrived. I wait for what felt like an eternity after texting her to get the reply. Instead I scroll to find that I had 4 notifications from the call section.

1 call from mom, 2 calls from dad and a voicemail from dad. I click to listen to the voicemail and wasn't surprised by what it said.

"Hey, honey. Don't freak out. Your mom has to work extra hours today and can't pick you up. I'm stuck at work, I'm sorry to tell you but you have to walk home. Remember, if someone try's to get you, you have that bear spray. And don't be afraid to spray them fuckers. Just don't spray yourself... Anyway, I love you, see you later."

I make a face and put my phone in my pocket. I grab the spray and start walking. This was stupid and seemed more painful as I walked. At least we only lived a mile away.

The only problem I had was with the traffic. When I got home I wasn't in the mood for anything. I search for the key in one of the hanging baskets, then unlock the door.

"Taylor! It took you forever to get here! What were you doing?" Dillian ask hopping down the steps. I squint at him and put the key back in the basket.

"I was thinking about how I could change every stupid thing I've ever done." I say dully.

"Oh, that explains it!" I give him a stink eye and throw my bag at him. He laughs and runs back up to his room.

I drag my feet to the kitchen and grab some bread, cheese, and butter. I pulled a pan out of a drawer and place it on the stove. I turn it on medium high and start buttering the bread. I step over to the spice cabinet and grab the garlic salt. I wasn't someone who really liked salty food but it made it a little better. I spray the pan with the non-stick spray and placed a bread piece down. I stuck 2 slices of cheese on it and then the other piece of bread. I put the rest of the stuff up and wait to flip it. It didn't take long and I was done fixing my grilled cheese. That lunch didn't do shit for me today. It was gross and that apple was nasty as fuck. I thought that would be the best part too.

What looks the best at the moment never is later.


	3. Excuse Me?

It's now November and I still wasn't too happy here. This place just got worse and worse as time passed. Today was test day. Not EOC's, just test...

I dramatically push the blankets off me and rub at my eyes. I slide out of bed and grab some comfortable clothes. I head to the bathroom to change and wash up. When I look up into the mirror I sigh. My hair wasn't as short as it was before. Now it hangs just above my eyebrows. I try and make it look decent then I put some mascara on. I'm not sure why but I just felt like it. I end up stumbling down the stairs and pouring some cereal. When I reach for the milk I end up finding it empty. I throw my head back in annoyance and turn back to the bowl. I grab an apple and plop down in one of the counter seats. I stuff my face and check the time. I quickly finish and jog up the stairs to brush my teeth. I check my hair, grab my jackets from my room and head out.

My walk to school was cold as shit. I tug on my bag and walk through the entrance. As soon as I did Jeffery waves me into the office. I walk over and asked what he wanted.

"We have an exchange student coming in at some point today. He has most of the same classes as you so I want you to try and help him." I blink at him a bit confused. "That's not a problem is it?"

"No, it's not a problem, I'm just stressed at the moment." I say snapping out of my daze. "Where is he from?"

"Um... Russia, I think." He says looking for a paper. When he finds it he hands it to me. "Here..."

"Malach Kravec? Odd..." I mumble to myself wondering what he looked like. Maybe blonde and blue eyes, or black hair and brown eyes. He might not look anything like I'm imagining... He could be a fat rich kid for all I know.

"First bell will ring in a minute. Might want to hurry."

"Yeah.. Do I keep this or-" I say look down at the paper.

"Just go, I'll print another." He says waving me away.

"Alright, see you later Jeff." I say nearly jogging to art class.

~~~

It wasn't until the middle of 3rd block that the door opened. I was too busy copying notes to look to see who was there.

"Oh, you must be Malach!" My head snapped up to see Mr. Hodges as he walked to greet the lengthy boy.

It was to dark to see Malach's features but he wore a hoodie and worn out jeans. His sneakers looked semi new and his hair was just a tad shorter than mine. Mr. Hodges flips the lights on only to blind the rest of the class.

"Class, this is our new student, Malach Kravec." By this point everyone was staring in his direction. His cheeks start to grow rosy and he looks down to the floor. He shoves his fist into his coat pouch. "Is there anything you want to tell to the class about yourself?" He was trying to get this guy, who looked terrified, to speak in front of a crowd of 31.

He shakes his head.

"Okay... Well, there are a few seats back near Taylor. You can choose which you want." Hodges gestured back to me. My heart drops when he said my name. A few people snicker and look in my direction. I just ball my hands into fist as I lean back in annoyance. This is why I hate it here.

It was almost lunch time and Malach tapped the table next to where I was writing. I look over to him and he pushes a note to me. I unfold it and try to read his chicken scratch hand writing.

 

My English is not tha best  
I hope u do not mind if I just write 4 now...

 

I smiled awkwardly at his writing and nod. I hold the paper as I start writing.

 

That is okay. My name is Taylor Haizer by the way.  
If you were wondering we go to lunch in about 5 minutes.

 

I push the paper back to him. He squints at it and shakes his head. He looks up at me and gave me a confused look. He does something on the paper and slides it back.

He had circled the word wondering and drew a line to a question mark.

 

It means that you are thinking about something.

 

After reading that he nods and looks back to me. He still seemed a little confused though. He was actually a good looking guy. Dirty blonde hair, almost brown, was fixed nicely with some hair gel. His eyes were an icy steel blue. He stared into my eyes and I started to find it awkward. I look over to the teacher who was getting ready to head out to the lunch room. I look back to Malach, who was folding the paper we use. He made an triangle then started looking around like a lost puppy. I knew that he was looking for the trash can to I stick my hand out towards him. I look at it in confusion and I made the "give that here" signal with my hand. He finally puts the paper on my palm.

We walk side by side in silence to the lunch area. He looked horrified of the people stuffed in there. I guess I did that on my first day too. He stands close to me in the line, not sure what to get. After we pay I head outside not thinking about where I sat. I stop when I get there to look at him.

"You wouldn't mind if we sat here, would you?" I say to him.

He jumped a little at my voice. I guess my voice doesn't match the way I look. He then shakes his head and we sit. We get some funny looks and I could hear that boy from the first day laugh at us. He tries to talk to me all the time and it bugs the shit out of me. When we were about done he stomped his smart ass over to us.

"So, are you two a thing or am I just imagining this?" He said looking over Malach. God, why is he so gay.

I took a deep breath and look over to Malach who was now done with his food. I stand and push past the boy who's name still slips my memory.

"Hey you little bitch, don't ignore me." He says grabbing my shoulder. When I try to get away he shoves me into the ground. His friends became a giggling mess while other people stare. Even people from inside were at the windows watching.

"To, chto, chert voz'mi, chelovek!" Malach yelled at the guy who threw me to the ground.

"Hey, buddy, whatever language you're speaking isn't what we speak here in America." He said with a laugh.

"Khorosho, poluchit' yebat' nad nim." He sounded angry.

I reach for my tray only for that asshole to stomp on my hand. I heard something snap. My hand starts throbbing as tears fill my eyes. It was my right hand to...

Malach was about to drag him away but a teacher came outside.

"What in heavens name is happening out here?!" A woman squeals out as she looks over the situation.

"That jerk broke my hand..." I choke out.

She looks between the two boys. I raise my left hand to point at him. He squints at me angrily. The teacher drags him to office and Malach helps me up. He picks the tray up and puts it away for me. A bell goes off and he looks at my hand concerned.

"Where do we go?" His voice was heavy with a Russian accent.

"Back to the room. The school nurse won't help me any." I say turning towards the steps.

In my backpack I had ace bandage and sports tape. If I can set my bones back into place then wrap it I should be okay until the end of the day. Then I could go to the hospital and get real medical help. When we get back I head towards my chair, where my bag hung.

"Can you find the wrap in there?" I say pointing to the bag. He looks to the bag and back to me. I sigh. "In there," I say pointing again. "Can you" I say pointing to him. "Get my wrap." I say making circular motions around my hand. He nods and starts searching through my bag. Eventually he finds the two things I was talking about. "Thank you. Can you do something for me?" He nods and puts the stuff down on the table. I take a shaky deep breath. "Take this finger and straighten it out." I cringe while I point at my pinky finger. He looks at me with a similar disgusted look on his face.

"Sit." He said pointing to the desk. I nod and do as I'm told.

I take a deep breath and prepare to cry some more. I grip the side of the table as he takes my hand. He snaps my finger into place. I snatch my hand away and cry out. I shake as tears sting my eyes.

It took me a few seconds to find the strength to point to my other fingers. Eventually we got done and he starts wrapping individual fingers with the sports tape. When he got done with the tape someone walked through the door. Malach jerked my hand when he jumped and it sent a sharp pain shooting though me.

I yelp and take my hand away again.

"I didn't interrupt anything did I?" A boy named Cameron ask with a grin.

"Not really..." I choke while I try to regulate my breaths. When he sees the tears running down my face he stops smiling.

"Shit, you were the one who got hurt... Did he break your hand?" He ask weaving through the desk to get to us.

"He didn't..." I say referring to Malach. "But yeah my hand's screwed." I gasp as Malach starts wrapping my hand with the ace bandage.

"Damn... Well the teacher will be back in a few so get ready for more notes." He says sarcastically and heads back up to the front to his desk.

Malach gives me a look and then a friendly grin. He touches my leg and goes to sit down. Excuse me, I think to myself slightly embarrassed. My face was starting to burn...

I was careful not to touch anything with my right hand. It throbbed about 99.9% of the time and it made me want to cry. The bell rang for us to go to 4th block and Malach rushes to grab my bag.

"You don't have to carry my stuff." I say reaching for my bag. He shakes his head and pulls the other strap on. I smile at him and start towards our next class. Science was usually the best class now days and today with Malach it was different. Cameron stared us down most of the class. I'm not sure if he was jealous or what but I don't think he took his eyes away from us. His grey eyes just bore into us and it really got to me. Finally, I look back at him and give him a hellish look.

"Are you two together?" He mouths to me. I grin and almost laugh a little. I find myself shaking my head to the truth.

"Ah... Okay..." He mouths out and I look back down to my paper.

I could still feel his eyes glued to me and it gave me anxiety. I look back at him a few minutes later. He quickly acts like he wasn't staring and I smile. Now that this semester is almost over someone decides to like me.

The last bell rings and everyone jumps up and runs out. The smart people wait until it quiets down a little and then leaves.

"Do you walk, take the bus or a car?" I ask as he adjust the straps on my backpack.

"Walk." He says as I trip over someone's foot. "What you do?" He ask trying to sound like he has spoken this language his entire life.

"Same as you, gotta walk." I say tugging on my jacket.

"Where you live?" He asked as we wait to cross the street.

"Old Creek Village. How about you?" He obviously didn't know where mine was but I've gotten lost many times and I now know this area quiet well.

"Um... The run down houses." He says pointing to the right of where I take a left. I nod and point to the left.

"I live a little that way." I say while he nods.

"I walk you to your house." He says quietly. I look at him not sure of why he would want to. He doesn't seem like the type who's into girls. He's almost too good looking...

It didn't take long to get home. With him following me I wasn't as worried as normal. When we arrive I realize how this would look. I had a broken hand and a handsome boy next to me. My dads car was sitting in the driveway and I stop.

"I don't know if you want to go to my house." I say turning to him. He looks down at me and that's when I really felt the difference.

I might be 5 foot 3, but I feel like a midget next to him. He was at least 6 foot 4. I know someone back in NC that's that tall...

"I just want you to be okay." He said look behind me, then he squints.

"Taylor?! What happened to your hand, Tay-Tay?" I heard Dillian scream from behind me. I could hear him run up behind me and I wasn't thinking. I swung around, using none other than my right hand, to stop Dill pickle.

He slams into my hand. I cry out, falling back onto Malach. We all tumble to the ground, Malach being the lucky one. He landed on his butt, while I end up in his lap. Dill had fell backwards onto his back and was rubbing his head. I curl into a fetal position trying not to sob.

"Eto normal'no, chto ya zdes' ..." He says shushing me.

I really wish I knew what he was saying... When I calm down a little Malach picks me up and takes me to my house. Apparently Dillian just let a stranger into our house... Nice, Dill pickle.

"Dad! Something's wrong with Taylor!" Dill calls into the living room. I could hear the recliner click shut and when my dad sees Malach he freaks out.

"Who the hell is he?" He ask angrily.

"I think it's her boyfriend! He was with her when they got here." Dillian shrieks, I shake my head and cry.

"H-he's no-not my boyfri-end!" I choke through sobs. It was silent for a few seconds and I could feel Malach tense up.

"Well, come on! You don't have to hold her all day." My dad grumbles as he waved Malach to the living room.

Malach sets me down on the couch and stands awkwardly in the corner of the room.

"Did you do this to her hand?" My dad asks looking at Malach. He shakes his head frantically. "Then who?!"

"Dad!" I croak. "He doesn't speak English! He's an exchange student from Russia."

My dad just squints at the boy who was biting the inside of his cheek. I had just lied for him and if he ruined the chance I just gave him he's screwed.

"At least he understands us... Alright, if your hand hurts as much as you're making look we should take a look at it." He turns to Malach. "I hope you live nearby, because you're walking boy."

I wipe my tears away.

"See you tomorrow." I choke out to him. He nods and gives me a small smile. He walks out, leaving me to suffer.


	4. Winter Days

Finals were done for this term of school and now everyone was excited for spring. Snow was piled almost 5 foot high outside, I wasn't used to this much snow. Back down in NC we were lucky to get an inch a year. The mountains always got more.

It was the start of winter sports try outs and Malach wanted me to go with him to swimming. I was the only person who was nice to him anymore. He refuses to talk to anyone in class and never wants to go home. He'd rather be with me. I asked him why one day and he refused to tell me. It was after school and we walked down the long hallways to get to the pool room. We didn't have to be there for another 5 minutes so we walked slow.

"Why don't you try out?" He ask looking down at me.

"I won't make the team. I'm too slow." I say looking down. "Plus my hands in a cast." I raise my hand to show off the light blue colored cast.

"Yeah, I forgot about that..." He says scratching the back of his neck.

I smile as we approach the glass doors. I point to where the changing room was and head to the bleachers. It was surprisingly warm in there. I start to take off my hoodie and I hear someone run up to me.

"Taylor? You're not trying out are you?" I heard a familiar voice boom from behind me. I spin around with my cast still stuck in the sleeve and my head still in the hole.

"I would but I can't." I say waving my stuck hand.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot!" Cameron exclaims with a blush.

I nearly trip backwards when I see him shirtless and in a tight, spandex like swimming suit. In all honesty I wasn't expecting him to have abs or be interested in swimming. The glass doors swing open again and Malach walks through. Now he was exactly what I was expecting. He's a swimmer and a runner. If you wanted to see real abs he was the one to look at.

"Here, I help you." Cameron said as he shimmied the sleeve off my cast.

"Thanks." I say quietly trying not to stare at Malach. He saw us and starts walking over. I wave to him and he smiles. Cameron turns to look and sighs at the sight.

"You two are always next to each other, are you not?" He ask.

I just laugh and nod. It was true. We sat next to each other in every class and then together at lunch. If someone didn't know better they would think we're a thing. Cameron looks at Malach and got a jealous look on his face. I'm sure he wanted his body, or something similar.

They didn't do any swimming today, it was mostly giving out paper work and then learning the stretches. When they were told it was done for the day Malach came back over to me. As he walked closer I noticed some discolored patches of skin on his stomach. I wasn't sure if I should say anything or not... He grabs his clothes and starts putting them on over his suit. He stuffs his under wear in his bag and we started walking to my house. It was only and hour long so when we sneak into my house it was 4:13. It takes about 15 minutes to walk home so they must have let us out a little early. It was quiet. I walk over to the fridge where a new note was.

 

Dillian's feeling sick so I took him to the doctor. You and your friend better behave while I'm gone!  
-Love your mean momma

 

I roll my eyes and head up stairs to my room. Malach throws his bag down near the door and sits in my beanbag chair. He rubs his eyes and sinks down into the chair as low as possible.

"Are you tired?" I ask with a grin slipping onto my face.

"Yeah, I didn't sleep well last night." I nod in agreement. I had a nightmare last night and it was just too realistic for me. I think I had woken up at 3 in the morning and I don't remember dozing off after that.

I grab my computer and go to the internet. I pull up Netflix and look over to him. He was sleeping and looked quite peaceful. I reach over and pull my blinds closed. I put my earphones in and put on a horror movie.

It was dark out when my parents walked through the door. I had finish my movie and had pulled up Tumblr. I was debating on whether or not open my curtains up, but what was the point? It was night time and then I would seem suspicious. I do have a guy sleeping in my room...

"We have Chinese take out downstairs. Just in case you're hungry." I hear my dad call through my door. I turn on my lamp and walk over to Malach.

"Hey..." I say shaking his shoulder. "There's some food down in the kitchen." I mumble, but he still wasn't waking up.

His shirt was slid up to where I could see the discolored skin. I crouch next to him and examine him. If he was to wake up now then he'd be in for a surprise. I lifted his shirt a little and then put it back. At first I thought these were a birthmark, but it's obvious that they're bruises. It looks like he had tried to cover them up...

"Malach?" I grab his shoulder and shake him lightly. He stirs a little and jumps when he sees me. "Sorry, we have food downstairs." I say with a smile. How was I going to confront him about those bruises? I doubt he was in a fight, and if he was I highly doubt he lost.

He pushes himself from the chair and we head downstairs. Dillian was nowhere to be seen and only my parents sit at the table. I give Malach a plate and we start dumping food on our plates. When we sit down at the table my dad squints at him. I start eating and wait for someone to say something.

"So, where's Dillian?" I say after swallowing.

"Upstairs, asleep." Mom say quietly. I nod and take another bite.

"What's wrong with him this time?" I say trying to act like I care.

"We'll tell you later." My dad says eyeing Malach. I turn to him and see that he's stopped eating.

"Izvinite..." Malach says leaving the table. By this point I do understand what he's saying. He told me that that word means 'excuse me'. He heads to the bathroom for whatever reason.

I look at my parents for an explanation.

"We'll talk when he leaves the house." Mom mumbles twisting her chopsticks around the noodles. Whatever was wrong with Dillian wasn't good.

When me and Malach finish I walk with him back to his house. White flakes floated down from the dark purple sky to twirl around us. When we stop to wait for the light to turn he looks over to me.

"Why are walking with me? You never do this." His voice was like the wind, soft and gone in an instant.

"I needed to get out of the house." My voice was wispy but in a good way. I was telling the truth this time. If I didn't leave I'd be stuck with horrible news of my sick brother. I didn't want to know what was wrong with him.

"Okay... But I don't want you going into my home." He say quietly. I look up at him, wondering about his bruises.

"Alright, whatever you want." I mumble.

When we enter his dreadful looking neighborhood I walk closer to him. Some people sat in their front lawn, smoking. Others looked like they were sell each other drugs...

"Don't look at them. They might try to sell us some if we're not careful." He whispers. I nod.

I can see someone point at us and start walking in our direction. I swallow and grab Malach's arm, pulling myself closer to him. He pulls my hood up to cover my face and drags me forward. The figure follows us even after we turn down another road. Malach spins me to where he's facing the person and I'm behind him.

"I thought you were going to take us home!" The figure laughs. Malach squeezes my left hand and lets go.

"What do you want?" He calls to the figure. He stood tall and made himself sound older.

"Well, who's with you? He look's pretty." The man called. I flusher at being called a man.

"What the-" I grumble before Malach could stop me.

"He doesn't like your kind." Malach spits out. Now I was confused. Did he think I liked girls? I shake my head slightly.

"Oh, then why was he all up on you?" The figure says walking closer. Malach stiffens when the man said that. "Too bad really. Because I wanted a peace of that sweet little ass." I choke when I hear that. I grab Malach and start to stomp off. "What? Are you scared of a little dick?" The man called out.

"Taylor, my house is that way..." He says trying to backtrack. I spin around and he bumps into me.

"What the hell was that?" I ask harshly.

"Those dealers go for anything and everything." He said and I cringe.

"How the hell have you dealt with them? I mean that's just fucking gross!"

"You get used to it..." He mumbled. I'm sure there was a story to this.

"Are you going to go home or are we just going to stand here?" I whisper looking around slightly agitated.

He takes my hand and we walk down a small driveway to a small apartment like building. Before we enter he lets go of my hand and points to a wire fence.

"When you leave, climb over that and walk to your right. You will end up back at your house..." He said quietly. I nod and we continue into the building.

We take the stairs to the third floor and rounded the corner to walk to the very end of the hall. He look at me and I wave goodbye. He smiles and digs his keys from his pocket. I wait until he turns back to me. He grabs me and hugs me tight.

"Spokoynoy nochi, lyubov' moya." He grins and I nod. I really need to learn Russian...

~~~

"He's got what?!" I ask my parents. I was trying to be quiet but I'm pretty sure I just yelled. Maybe I heard them wrong.

"He's got cancer..." My mom looked sick.

"What kind?" I try to say quietly.

"GBM... Don't say anything though. I want him to be happy for as long as possible.." I didn't know what GBM was. I was going to go look it up later.

"How the hell am I supposed to keep that from him?" I whisper harshly.

It didn't make too much sense to me right now. This news wasn't sinking in, kind of like how Malach talks in Russian around me. It just makes no sense...


	5. New Years

I had planned on meeting Malach at the park near our houses but it started snowing again. I hate New York this time of year... Like if you want to do anything it gets ruined by other thing that's planned. And today my life was ruined by some snow. God fucking dammit...

I wasn't having a good rest of the year. At midnight tonight Malach and I will meet no matter the weather. I could no longer stand to stay at my house. My parents only mope around and Dillian aches too much to want to do anything. At the moment I was at the library. It was quite here and nobody knew who I was.

I studied my Spanish while I listened to music. I was minding my own business until someone sat down beside me. They sat to where I could only see a book shoved into their face. I grimace and take an ear bud out. Once I make a gesture to them and they put the book down. My eyes go wide at the site of him. I hadn't seen him in over 5 months now. Why was he here, in New York?

"Jesse?" I exclaim in a whisper. "Why the hell are you here?"

"Well, my cousins birthday was yesterday and I was nearby..." He smirks, showing his straight teeth.

I felt like I was dreaming. My best friend was sitting not even a foot away from me and I couldn't find the strength to move. His hair was a light brown that matched his tan skin. His rough looking hands gripped the sides of the table, unsure of what to do. Those dark greenish brown eyes of his was scared of the city. No, they were scared that I wouldn't accept him anymore. I shut my computer down and shove it into my bag. I look back to him. I stand only to drag him with me out of the library.

"When do you have to get back to your hotel?" I asked as we wait on the cross walk sign to light up.

"By at least two." He said with a smile. I look at the time on the clock tower and make a face.

"Aren't you a little late then? It's already 3..." I say with a worried look.

"I meant in the morning, sweet heart." He says with a chuckle.

My face reddens at his words. What the fuck even was today?

~~~

When we got to the park it was around 3:30 and only a few children bounded around the park. Snowmen and snow-women stood around the entrances and the angels lay helplessly on the ground. Some were going to get covered in a blanket and forgotten about. The others would stay only to melt away. That's the sick thing about this world. Nothing last forever.

"Why don't we just go back to your place?" He ask as we try to avoid stepping on an angel.

"Trust me, I'm saving us an argument by not going there..." I say quietly.

"Why, what the hell happened?"

"I'll tell you in a second." I say as I walk towards the bathrooms.

I wasn't planning on doing anything weird with him, but somewhere private around here is a rarity... I check the door and of course it wasn't occupied. This thing's always empty. I look around and when I know that no one will see us I drag him in after me. I turn the light on and lock the door.

"My brother's really sick. He's got cancer or some shit. My family doesn't want him to feel shitty about being sick, but now he doesn't even want to talk to us." I say in a sickly tone.

"Well, shit... If I'd have known I wouldn't have even asked." He says turning his gaze to the wall. "I just wanted to see where you lived. So when I finally get my license I can come and live near you, and visit you all the time. I want you to be with me..." He says turning away to lean against the wall. I wanted to comfort him but how was I supposed to tell him about Malach? He'd probably cry if he knew about him...

I place my hand on his shoulder, barely able to feel the skin under his long sleeve shirt. He spun around and pushed me up against the wall. My inters tighten and I felt my heart nearly stop. His lips were only hovering over mine. I wasn't sure how to react. So I did what any other person would do in this situation. His lips were soft, his breath was warm against the frigid air. I shiver and he pulls me closer to him. I was scared of what might happen. Was he going to take this to far and end up with us screwing? God, I hope not...

Somehow I end up sitting on his lap, his hands tangled in my hair. What was I doing here? What was he doing here?

His hand slips under my shirt and pulls it over my head. Why was I allowing this? He lays me down on his jacket and straddles my sides. How did we think this was okay? We're only 15 years old.

~~~

He pants, looking back to me . He's half naked and I'm still in his grip. His arm was laid beside me and he leaned in to kiss me again. I wasn't sure about what had just happened. I pretty sure that I had just lost my virginity though... Why the fuck did I allow him to do that? Was I really in need of something physical like that? Did I really need for Jesse to know anything?

"Jesse... I-" I get cut off by his hand sliding to my mouth.

"I shouldn't have done that..." He says quietly. "I'm sorry, you probably have someone else that you're interested in. I'm sorry..." He says backing away from me.

He shields his face with his hands and I sit up. He was only half a foot away, I could always bring him back...

"I need for you to forget that I exist. I'm no longer your friend, I was never your first anything. I can't be involved with you..." He says as he stands to get dressed. I could see the tears forming in his eyes, the sadness that he had before seeing me today was about 10 times worse now. I could tell that he didn't want to say what he had, but if he hadn't he'd be stuck with the torment of never being able to see me. What he'd said earlier was just a show. He'd never have the strength to leave North Carolina. He would never have the strength to look me in the eyes again. This is the last time I'll ever see Jesse. I want something better than this to remember him by. We took something from each other that we can never get back. I guess that's enough for him.

~~~

It was now past 11:30 and I wait for Malach to find his way to the park. I could hear the steps of another person behind me. I turn to see him standing only a yard away.

"Ya vizhu, chto vy prishli rano." I've learn a good bit of Russian by now. I pretty sure that what he'd just said was "I see you came early." Or something close to that.

I nod and swing my leg to where a leg was on either side of the bench like seat. He sits down like me, facing my direction and gave me a love struck look.

"Kak ty moya prelest'?" Well I know for a fact that he'd asked how I was but I'm not sure what that one word is...

"I'm good, and how are you?" I wish that he'd just speak English around me.

"Ya prosto zamechatel'no dorogaya." I'm super confused as to why he'd use words that I obviously don't know. Like, seriously?

Our odd conversation continued for around 25 minutes. There were people starting to show up and it was obvious what they were waiting for. They were like us, waiting on the fireworks. Malach claims that he's only seen fireworks once. I told him that if he'd only seen them once then he'd have to come here, tonight. That's why we're out in this freezing weather. People were starting to count down from 60... Now 40. And 20...

"Vy potseluy menya v polnoch'?" Will you kiss me at midnight? He asked me as he held out his hand.

I wanted to cry. I wanted to but I was so scatterbrained from earlier that I wouldn't function properly. I open my mouth to respond but when I did I flash of light blinded me. A bright rainbow of color illuminated the dark winter skies. My gaze, along with Malach's, turns to the mesmerizing explosions. I turn back to him, eyes wide.

He looks down into my eyes and sees something with in them. I flinch at his hurt look. He pulls me closer to him and into a hug. His body was radiating a warmth I longed for. Something I wish I could keep for ever. When He pulls away when the crowd was in an uproar. He looks deep into my eyes and I wasn't sure what he saw in me. Maybe it was the pain from losing my best friend earlier. The street lights seemed dim and I couldn't seem to hear much of anything. I only knew that he pulled his face closer and rest is forehead against mine. Tears crept to my eyes. My hands find his face and I pull it closer.

I stopped before our lips touched. I couldn't. This wasn't how I wanted to spend my first day of the year... No. There isn't anyone named Jesse in my life anymore. I never knew and never will know him. He's a stranger now and forever. Malach is the only one I know now. No one else.

He leaned forward and gave me my first kiss of the year. Malach tangled his fingers in my short hair. He pulled away and whispered something unexpected into my ear.

"I love you, Taylor."


End file.
